Minnesotans drive slow? (construction, to live, fences)

[ram2]

Speed limits are SUPPOSED to be set based on 85th percentile vehicle speeds as measured by traffic engineers, not the whims of the local politicians or police so they can write more speeding tickets based on underposted speed limits (revenue generation). The speed limit in Wisconsin used to be 70 prior to the start of the 55 nonsense in 1974. Michigan passed a law several years ago that requires all cities to post speed limits based on 85th percentile speeds. Many cities do not abide by this law (funny how politicians don't have a problem ignoring laws). If you get a speeding ticket in Michigan on a road that has a speed limit not in compliance with the 85th% rule, you can go to court and have the ticket dismissed. And we all know speed limits have nothing to do with safety since we can now legally drive up to 80 on the very same roads where the maximum limit used to be 55.

[StevenE2]

I thought Wisconsin drivers were slow. I lived on the border of Illinois and Wisconsin, and when I would drive back home to the Twin Cities it was the Illinois drivers primarily flying by Wisconsin drivers up and down I-94, and the MN drivers seemed to pass the WI drivers too, but to a lesser extent. It may be because the State Troopers in Wisconsin are in a ton of places. I once got a ticket for going 89 in a 65 in Wisconsin, I'm a MN driver, so take it how you want to, but I don't drive slow.

[sm007]

Yes Minnesotans due tend to drive slow, I never realized it until I started traveling to other states. Mostly has to due with so many strict law enforcement here and nobody wants higher insurance premiums. One thing that bugs me is that for some reason in MN people will stay in the left lane and continue to drive at a slower speed and back up traffic for miles, I haven't noticed much of that in other states but here. Just about any 2 lane rural highway in southern or central minnesota could easily be a 60 or 65 speed limit, but they like to keep it at 55.

[audadvnc]

I remember visiting relatives in Texas, and remarked on how fast people drove on the highways, well over the posted speed limits. My uncle's reply - "Speed limits are like the Easter Bunny - a good story to tell the kids."

But he was in the Air Force - he likes to go fast!

[knke0204]

People drive so DARN SLOW here.

Just this weekend on Sunday morning I went for a drive down the interstate, just a 12 miler. The traffic was so clogged, and I wondered why? In a 70 mph zone I not once went over 65 for that 12 mile stretch. I couldn't understand it. It's not like there was traffic, it was just a handful of boneheaded Swedes driving 64 in a 70.

[undfan]

Where I'm at, in the woods and lakes of central Minnesota, it's the sightseeing tourists that slow things down the most.

[audadvnc]

I've been known to exceed the posted speed limit once or twice. But, like the Arizona patriots like to say about undocumented workers crossing the border, or the drug warriors proclaim about pot use - "that's the law. What part of illegal don't you understand?"

Is there any difference? Is one law valid, the other not? Do we feel we have the right to pick and choose which laws we wish to follow, like items at the deli counter? If so, why even have a government that is tasked with organizing a legal structure on society? Everybody can decide what moral principles they will stand behind, and which ones to ignore. That would be just fine, in theory... but I suspect the transition period to universal acceptance of personal responsibility would be painful and bloody.

[knke0204]

Originally Posted by audadvnc

I've been known to exceed the posted speed limit once or twice. But, like the Arizona patriots like to say about undocumented workers crossing the border, or the drug warriors proclaim about pot use - "that's the law. What part of illegal don't you understand?"

Is there any difference? Is one law valid, the other not? Do we feel we have the right to pick and choose which laws we wish to follow, like items at the deli counter? If so, why even have a government that is tasked with organizing a legal structure on society? Everybody can decide what moral principles they will stand behind, and which ones to ignore. That would be just fine, in theory... but I suspect the transition period to universal acceptance of personal responsibility would be painful and bloody.

I'm not talking about speeding, i'm talking about going at least 70 in the fast lane. If you choose to drive 63,64,65,66,67,68,69 take a side road or get the F over.

One should also be going 70 mPH when they hit the freeway, that's what an entrance ramp is for. Too many people here putt putt down the ramp going 55 and when they hit the flat freeway they slowly accelerate until about 67 mph then look all confused as to why people are blowing by them.

Same with exiting. You DONT touch your brakes until YOURE on the exit ramp. I'm so sick of being behind these bone heads who slow down to 55 then flip on their signal (if any) at the last second and get onto the exit ramp to slow even more down.

I just think there is a strong lack of driving ability in the Twin Cities. Parents should be required to have their child log 100 hours or 1000 miles of driving before even thinking about going to behind the wheel training, and Behind the Wheel training should be a gauntlet of intense driving too.

[audadvnc]

But - according to K-'s posts, you're a 20-something that only drives a couple dozen miles a week, and you've bragged that you like to speed on snow and ice.
Are you a professional driver in your spare time, or are you merely parroting something your dad said? It sounds like an old Steve Cannon monologue.

[Squeamish]

I've driven more than anyone else I know throughout the Midwest and to a lesser extent elsewhere in the country. MN does have fairly strict speed enforcement. So do WI and IL, but they're different types of strict. Nowadays I drive 7 over pretty much anywhere because it seems to be the most I can get away with. I'm all about efficiency, saving time. With so many miles to drive, the time savings adds up. The only problem I've had with this speed other than small towns is the MN State Patrol. Received a warning in MN for going 65 in a 55 when my speedometer said I was going 63. Timed it with the GPS and found out I was actually probably going 64. Then I got a ticket in MN for going 80 in a 70 when my speedometer said I was going 78. Per the GPS, I could've been going 79, but I'm highly confident that I wasn't actually going 80. Both of these incidents lead me to believe that the State Patrol may consistently calibrate their radar guns 1 mph too high. Maybe it's intentional, maybe it's not. Now I go 7 over in MN, to give the State Patrol the tolerance they seem to need. Except on some stretches of urban interstate with little to no enforcement, such as 394 going against rush hour flow. I reverse commute. The carpool lane is open to all traffic going my direction, and few people use it, which means I can easily go 20 over for a few miles and hopefully shave a minute off my commute. The catch: People of all speeds sometimes feel the need to use that lane, even when they're not passing people in the other 2 lanes. Then I get stuck behind someone going say 55, frequently a bus, and end up merging back into the normal traffic lanes to pass them on the right.

In agreement with many of the other posters, I have a huge issue with people driving in the left lane when they're not passing somebody, or taking many minutes to pass one vehicle with me waiting behind them. No idea why people do it. Nobody wins. They undoubtedly don't like me on their tail, and of course I don't like being slowed down by them. People should drive right, pass left. No excuses not to. Sometimes I flash my lights at them, which in many other countries means "Please move over, I'm going faster than you and need to pass." Many Americans don't seem to know what this means and just get upset and make me wait longer. Again, that's pointless. There's no benefit to road rage. I just want to get past them and get on my merry way without wasting time. People seem to have the need to show their superiority, and often I'm wondering if they mistake my flashing my lights or tailgating for asserting my superiority or whatever, when in reality I just want to get to my destination as quickly as I can so I can have more time there to do whatever and go after my goals.

If the left lane is occupied and the right lane is free, I merge right and pass on the right without even thinking twice about it. There are too many cars who do this to waste time sitting behind every one trying to get their attention to move over.

Another random note - I usually find myself going faster than 90% of traffic when the pavement is dry, but when it's icy or snowy, or even if it's raining heavily, I find myself often the slowest car on the road with people constantly passing me. That said, I've only gone in the ditch once in the hundreds of thousands of miles I've driven. There's no point in pushing yourself if the risk of going in the ditch is high. You may make it halfway there fast but if you go in the ditch you just lost all that time and much more.